


seasons they will change, life will make you grow

by no_mourners_no_funerals



Series: no mourners no funerals [3]
Category: Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Angst, Angst and Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Inej wants to talk with her parents about what happened, Kanej - Freeform, Menagerie - Freeform, Tante Heleen (mentioned) - Freeform, Yeah wesper is implied but who am i kidding, a bit - Freeform, a bit of fluff at the end, after birds fly in different directions, but can't do it alone, i love kanej, imagine dragons, kanej bantering over open windows and brilliant plans, so she goes to Kaz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2020-03-06 08:30:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18847363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/no_mourners_no_funerals/pseuds/no_mourners_no_funerals
Summary: Mrs. and Mr. Ghafa are in Wylan's house and they politely try to get to know what happened during these almost three years. Inej doesn't want to deal with it alone so she goes to Kaz for help.Sequel to "birds fly in different directions, you, i hope to see you again"title also inspired by "birds" by imagine dragons





	seasons they will change, life will make you grow

**Author's Note:**

> This is way longer than the first two from the series and i cant believe that i spent almost three days writing this (of course i wrote like 90% tday at 1am). I love kanej so much and here Kaz and Inej talk with her parents. Some angst some fluff at the end. Tell me what you think! 
> 
> (ps i also have an darklina(alarkling) oneshot if anybody’s interested)

They safely crossed the streets of Ketterdam, Kaz's and Inej's reputation successfully keeping pickpockets, thieves and other Barrel thugs at bay. Inej was keeping the conversation on how her parents have been and not on her. She wasn’t ready to face that. Kaz stayed out, limping behind them, starting to wonder why was he here and wouldn’t it be smarter to go back to the Slat. Of course Inej sensed the falter in his steps and shot him a glance that obviously said “don’t you dare”. He sighed. Maybe he’ll just walk them to Wylan’s house.

Wylan had been quite ecstasic to meet Inej’s parents. He immediately took them to one of the many guest rooms. Inej stayed beside the door, noticing that Kaz didn’t enter. 

“I’ll go back to the Slat. Spend some time with them,” he said and turned to go away.

Inej smiled softly. Some things never change. 

“Kaz?” she called after him. He turned around once more. “Thank you.”

A half-smile tugged at his lips. 

“Everything for you, Wraith,” he said and with the tap of his cane, he walked away. 

 

They were sitting in the sitting room, when the question they were all dancing around was finally asked.

"And what happened to you, Inej?" her mother asked.

Inej stiffened. She was preparing herself for this since she saw them in the harbour two hours ago, but she wasn't ready to tell it yet. Still, she couldn't stall anymore. She sighed and put her head in her hands. She needed someone beside her. But the only person who knew everything was Kaz. She hesitated. _Will he want to help me?_ She remembered how she almost gave up on him in the morning and it turned out that he bought her a ship and found her parents. There was still hope for him. Her hands recalled the feeling of his bare palms. She'll risk it. Inej looked at her waiting parents.

"I... can't do this alone. It's noon, the streets should be relatively safe. We're going to the Slat, there I'll tell you everything."

Her parents shared a look, but didn't question it. Inej told Wylan that they were going out and after a ton of reassurances that they will be okay (at which Inej's parents shared another look) they went. 

 

They were walking in silence, Inej deep in her thoughts. Was she being stupid? Kaz was still Dirtyhands and though she knew that in a way he cared for her, she couldn't shake off the feeling of making a mistake.

_I would come for you. And if I couldn't walk, I'd crawl to you._

_Everything for you, Wraith._

She took a deep breath and calmed down. It will be okay.

The crowd thickened a bit as they entered the Barrel. Inej tensed and looked at the rooftops with longing. It was so much more peaceful up there, over this whole chatter. But she had her parents with her, and even though they were acrobats, they would make far too much noise and this was Black Tips' territory. They had to cross it as quickly as they could. She looked at her parents, who were a bit uneasy.

"We need to go a bit quicker. It will be safer soon," she whispered. They nodded and picked up the pace.

A few streets farther, Inej's shoulders relaxed and she slowed down. Finally on the Dregs' territory. She saw her parents exchanging surprised looks. For them it probably looked exactly the same.

"Inej, how is this place safer?" asked her dad. She wondered what to tell him. That she was a part of the gang who controlled it?

"No one will rob or attack you here with me," she answered instead. Then, she noticed something peculiar. Geels. He was just stealing a woman's purse. Inej hesitated. If she was alone, she'd throw him out of their territory, but her parents were with her. She sighed. She should do something good for the gang, even if she'll be leaving Ketterdam in a few weeks. She darted forward and grabbed Geels by his collar. He seemed to be a lot thinner than when she saw him last time. She pushed him into a small alley that was almost empty. Her parents followed quickly.

"Hello, Geels. I see that you're not lieutenant anymore? Hmm? I hope it wasn't for your failure at the Exchange. And what's with the stealing here, surely you lost your way, didn't you?" Inej asked. Geels looked at her with terror.

"I... I..." he stuttered. Inej raised her brow. "I... they, they threw me out."

Now, that wasn't a surprise. Inej rolled up his sleeve to see it bandaged. Black Tips always cut off the tattoo when they threw someone out. Geels was telling the truth.

"That doesn't change anything. If I see you here once more... well, I'm sure Dirtyhands will take good care of you." She let him go and he ran away as if the ground was burning beneath his feet. Inej sighed and turned to her parents who looked mildly disturbed. And entirely confused.

"Come on," she said and continued to lead them to the Slat.

 

When the familiar, crooked figure of the Slat came into view, Inej wanted to kiss the ground from relief. Ten more minutes of her parents' confused looks and she'd go crazy. When they stopped in front of the door, Inej turned to Mrs. and Mr. Ghafa. 

"Give me a minute. If anyone tries to bother you, tell them that you're here from Dirtyhands' and the Wraith's order. They should leave you alone." She unfastened Sankta Alina from her forearm. "Take this just in case." And she disappeared behind the door. 

Finding Anika wasn't hard. Her blonde, half-shaved head was easy to spot from the distance. She was extremely popular now, being Kaz's lieutenant. Inej surprisingly didn't feel a pang of envy. The Wraith was going to be finally free. Still, she'll always come back to Kaz, she promised. Inej pulled Anika away for a moment. After a while of persuading, she took the lieutenant outside to her anxious parents. 

"This is Anika. She'll take you to Kaz, I'll meet you there. Alright?" Inej asked.

"Alright," said her mother.

Inej nodded and disappeared round the corner. She quickly climbed to old Per Haskell's office and saw Kaz perched up on his old chair. She had a few minutes until her parents would come. Kaz turned to her, mildly surprised, but quickly covered it up.

"Hello, Inej. What brings you here?" he asked.

She hesitated.

"I know I shouldn't be asking you this... but I'm not sure I'll manage to do it alone." Inej laughed dryly. "Yeah, the Wraith who climbed six stories up a hot ventilation shaft and broke into the Ice Court can't tell her parents what happened to her on her own." 

Kaz cringed a bit at the mention of the ventilation shaft. He still felt a bit bad at making her climb it. Inej looked at him expectantly. He nodded.

"Of course. Are they here?" he asked. Inej exhaled in relief and jumped down silently from the windowsill to the floor.  _She didn't know if I'd help her_ , Kaz realised.

"Yes. Anika is bringing them up. Also, I found Geels stealing on Alanstraat. Black Tips threw him out, his tattoo was cut off." She heard the door open and her parents coming in and she finished. "I don't think that he'll be causing problems, though. I might have scared him off." Kaz's lips twitched in a smirk.

"Oh, I'm sure you did." He looked at her parents standing awkwardly beside the door and stood up, leaning on his cane. "Good afternoon, Mrs. Ghafa, Mr. Ghafa. Please sit down, I believe it'll be easier to talk." 

Inej took her knife from her mother and fastened it quickly to her forearm. The Suli couple and Kaz sat down in the chairs on the other side of Kaz's desk, while Inej jumped up and sat on it, between Kaz's papers and documents. There was a second of awkward silence, before Inej said anything. 

"If you wonder why I dragged you through half of the city just to come here, let me explain. You asked me what I’ve been through and I told you I’d prefer to not to tell it alone. Well, Kaz Brekker is the only person who knows the whole story.”

”The only person?” asked Mr. Ghafa. 

Both of them nodded. 

Another while of awkward silence. Inej cleared her throat and started talking quietly. 

“The day I disappeared, when we were at the coast, we didn’t know that it was one of... slavers’ favourite places. They found me and locked me in their ship with a few other kids. We didn’t exactly know what was happening. We sailed for days, I think, before they let us out. We were in Kerch, on one of the farthest islands. There, rich people, mostly from Ketterdam, bought... well, slaves. Slavery is illegal here, but contracts are not. They forced you to sign a paper and you were bound to them until someone bought your contract.” Her gaze moved to Kaz for a second and then she was watching her hands again. “I was bought by Tante Heleen, she had, had a...” Her voice cracked. She looked at Kaz. 

“Tante Heleen, known in Ketterdam as the Peacock, was the owner of the Menagerie,” said Kaz. 

“Menagerie?” asked Mr. Ghafa. 

Kaz grimaced. 

“It was a pleasure house.”

The Ghafas inhaled sharply in unison. Inej flinched slightly, what Kaz immediately noticed. When Mrs. Ghafa wanted to stand up and hug her daughter, he put his hand on her shoulder for a second. She looked at him quizzically. He shook his head. He knew that look on Inej’s face, he saw it many times in the mirror. She was reliving her memories from the awful place and touch could only make her sink into herself even more. Mrs. Ghafa sat down again. Kaz continued. 

“I won’t describe what happened there to you. Inej was there for-“ he stopped to count. 

“Almost a year,” said Inej quietly. Another sharp inhales could be heard. 

Kaz cleared his throat. 

“One day, almost two years ago, I went there-“ here Mr. Ghafa shot him a betrayed glare, “-for information. I payed Tante Heleen for the secrets her clients spilled. When I was on my way out, I heard “I can help you”. I didn’t see or hear anybody coming up to me before I heard the voice. It was Inej. She sneaked up to me and I didn’t see or hear her. And she had bells on her ankles and wore brightly coloured silks.” 

Inej chuckled softly.

”What Kaz didn’t say is that it’s almost impossible to sneak up on him. It’s like he has eyes all around his head and hearing perfect like a cat. I never managed to do that again.”

”This one time was enough, though,” Kaz said with a smirk.

”The next day, Tante Heleen called me to her office. He was there. She told me that Per Haskell, the leader of a Barrel gang called Dregs, bought my contract. She made some mean comments and left me with Kaz. He told me that if I wanted, I could join the gang and gather secrets for him. I would climb the roofs of Ketterdam and listen to rich people, find out what they’re trying to hide. I would really work to pay up the contract and when I did, I’d be free. Obviously, it was a better perspective than Tante Heleen and the Menagerie. Even Kaz said that she was a monster. I agreed to join the Dregs. We created a myth around me. I was the Wraith, haunting the streets of Ketterdam, invisible and impossible to hear. The only law I obeyed was gravity. We were working together for Per Haskell for almost two years. Kaz was his lieutenant, the second most important person in the gang, but everybody knew that it was him that actually kept the gang together. Until, how long ago it was, Kaz? When you got the offer on the big gig?”

”About two months ago, maybe a bit more. Have you locked the window after you came in?” he asked with his rough voice.

”You know I always do.”

”Except when you feed the crows.”

”That was one time, Kaz, one time almost two years ago. And no one broke in anyway.”

”I had all my papers flying over the room.”

”Yes and I helped you gather them together so what’s your point?”

“No point, I was just making sure you locked the window. We don’t want the whole Ketterdam to know about our little trip to Fjerda.” 

Inej’s parents watched the exchange with a weak amuement clouded by concern for their daughter. 

“Anyway, about two months ago, Kaz got an offer on this big gig from one of Ketterdam’s wealthiest merchs, Jan Van Eck.” They both grimaced at the hated surname. “Basically, it meant that we had to break into the most secure place in the world. The Ice Court.” 

Mrs. Ghafa gasped and Mr. Ghafa raised his eyebrows in shock. 

“Yes, the Fjerdan Ice Court. We had to break in, free a prisoner who had knowledge that could destroy the world’s balance, break out and deliver him to Van Eck who claimed that he’d find him a safe place to hide. We’d get thirty million kruge. The team had six members, plus Per Haskell’s thirty percent and each of us would get four million kruge. Of course Kaz, whose greed will drive him to his death probably-“

”Inej, you have so little faith in me,” he interrupted her teasingly. Inej rolled her eyes. 

“No, I’m just stating the facts.”

”Jesper claims that facts are boring.”

”Jesper is Jesper and not a really good role model.”

”Wylan claims that he’s getting less annoying. And gambles less. And he would know.”

”I lived with them for a week and his personality sure hasn’t changed. As for gambling, I haven’t seen him in a den since your last “brilliant” plan, so you might have a point.”

Kaz raised an eyebrow. 

“Did Inej Ghafa just agree with me? I have to mark the date in my calendar. And my plans are brilliant.”

Inej snorted. 

“Not if they end with a wealthy merch double-crossing you and kidnapping me.”

A dark shadow ran through Kaz’s face. 

“Kidnapping you was the most idiotic decision he had made in his life and he payed for that.”

Inej smiled softly. 

_I would come for you. And if I couldn’t walk, I’d crawl to you._

“Yes, he did.”

”You were kidnapped?!” exclaimed Mrs. Ghafa.

”A few times.” Inej shrugged and started to laugh. Even Kaz smiled as he heard the sound. 

Then, Inej jumped into a very detailed story about how they were double-crossed and then how Kaz basically fought the entire city (with Kaz arguing with Inej when she said he did something stupid) and finished at:

”And then he found you.”

With many “oh!”s and “oh the saints”s Mr. and Mrs. Ghafa finally heard the whole story. Then Inej pointed out that they probably should get going because it was getting late. Kaz went with them to scare the Barrel tugs away, but he tried to sell a “I have a business to attend to so I’ll go with you” crap to Inej anyway. She didn’t believe him at all but let it slide. 

Once again he didn’t come in to the Van Eck mansion. Inej once again stayed at the door with him. 

“Thank you, Kaz, I don’t know how I would manage to tell them on my own.”

He actually smiled. 

“I did say: “everything for you, Wraith,” didn’t I?”

Inej chuckled. 

“Anyway, thank you all the same, Kaz Brekker.”

”Rietveld.”

She looked up at him, confused. He smirked down at her. 

“My real name is Kaz Rietveld.”

Inej inhaled sharply and smiled. 

“Fits.”

Kaz chuckled. 

“Bye.” 

He hesitated. Then, something unexpected happened and Inej wondered for a long time if she didn’t imagine it. Kaz leaned and kissed her lightly on the cheek. He gripped her hand for a second and then was gone. Inej stood shocked for a few moments and watched him walk down the road with a steady tap of his cane. Then, she realised something and it made her grin like an idiot. When he gripped her hand... he didn’t have his gloves. 

**Author's Note:**

> Anyway Kaz had like six years of education and has all the Crow Club expenses in his head? If not for Pekka Rollins he would be so ravenclaw


End file.
